Ask HN: What happened to theregister.com?

Post by nocoiner » Sat, Sep 10, 2022, 12:58 AM UTC

marttt wrote: post #92

alisonatwork wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thank you for responding to this topic, although what you're saying does disappoint me. I've been an on-and-off Reg reader since the Slashdot days, and I loved the style. But, like many UK media outlets in the past few years, there seems to be a push to "globalize" the product - most notably by replacing .co.uk domains with .com, but also in reducing the cynicism and irreverence that used to make UK media worth readi…

".. like many UK media outlets in the past few years, there seems to be a push to "globalize" the product .. also in reducing the cynicism and irreverence that used to make UK media worth reading even for people who weren't living in the UK." Isn't this actually a more general cultural shift. On the societal level, or on the level of the entire developed world. It often feels like people are simply tired of cynicism…

Post by GnarfGnarf » Sat, Sep 10, 2022, 1:01 AM UTC

diodesign wrote: post #47

Hello, I'm Chris Williams, the editor of The Register. Maybe I can answer some of these Qs. > what caused this transformation? All things have to evolve and move with the times. As you've said, we were known, for example, for "intentionally-obscure headlines." Guess what, that works for some people - and it was fun - but it was holding us back reaching many more people, not just from the headline tone but also aggreg…

Post by quickthrower2 » Sat, Sep 10, 2022, 1:05 AM UTC

taffronaut wrote: post #4

quickthrower2 wrote: post #2

Example of the previous editorial style: https://web.archive.org/web/20190410065314/https://www.there...

That's a real contrast. The current site is a shadow of its former self. The new stuff doesn't even seem to be paid-for placement - just lame outsourced copy.

Post by chasil » Sat, Sep 10, 2022, 2:34 AM UTC

rozab wrote: post #53

chasil wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe he then started the inquirer.net which ran for another decade. I remember them occasionally featuring a fragment of a poem by Alexander Pope: "Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer, And without sneering, teach the rest to sneer." https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damning_with_faint_praise

To see this gloriously realised, check out CGP Grey's description of Pope's feud with Thomas Hearne. Linking the full video because it's a masterpiece https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEV9qoup2mQ

Post by hansel_der » Sat, Sep 10, 2022, 7:55 AM UTC

quickthrower2 wrote: post #126

taffronaut wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a real contrast. The current site is a shadow of its former self. The new stuff doesn't even seem to be paid-for placement - just lame outsourced copy.

Bean counters have taken over. Ad in front of geek = $1 / 1000 impression. Ad in front of CTO = $10 / 1000 impressions. Then milk the cow, get the investment back and move on. Anyway https://www.theonion.com/ https://www.betootaadvocate.com/ Hopefully http://n-gate.com/ gets going again. (Type out the url, he detects HN redirects).